Luganville is the second largest city in Vanuatu after the capital Port Vila; it is located on the island of Espiritu Santo and has a population of 18,062 as of the 2020 census.

[5] During World War II, the American military erected two bases on two islands of what is now Vanuatu (a British-French colony known then as New Hebrides), one of which being Espiritu Santo.

[5][10][11] Other facilities built were five military hospitals, Luganville Seaplane Base, Pontoon Wharf, a floating drydock, and thousands of Quonset huts.

[12] By the second half of the 20th century, Luganville was largely French-speaking and initially resisted the attempts to gain independence leading up to its declaration on July 30, 1980.

[19] Part of the city is formed by squatted informal settlements such as La Milice, Mango, Pepsi, Rowok, Sarakata and St Michel.

Mango was first settled by Vietnamese migrants who constructed shelters out of scrap metal left behind by the United States Army.

[13] It has a strong tourist industry, namely in the areas of World War II artifacts and scuba diving (SS President Coolidge is a popular site as are the coral reefs), and is a destination for many cruise lines.